Leadership
With strong ties to Carnegie Mellon University, SEI leadership provides strategic vision as the institute works to innovate from rigorous research, improve the state of the practice in software and cybersecurity, and transition new technologies into the public sector, private industry, and academia.
Executive Leadership Team
The Software Engineering Institute Executive Leadership Team sets strategy and aligns the institute with the goals set by its sponsor. Highly visible, the team embodies the core values of the institute.
Director and CEO
Dr. Paul D. Nielsen is the Director and Chief Executive Officer of Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute (SEI), a U.S. Department of Defense federally funded research and...
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Deputy Director and COO
David Thompson currently serves as the SEI's Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer and oversees and directs internal and external business operations for the organization. A long-time resident...
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Chief Technology Officer
Tom Longstaff is Chief Technology Officer of the SEI. As CTO, Longstaff is responsible for formulating a technical strategy and leading the funded research program of the institute based on current...
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Chief Financial Officer
Heidi S. Magnelia is chief financial officer of the Software Engineering Institute, where she is responsible for financial, business, facilities, and central administrative services. She has more...
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Director, CERT Division
Gregory J. Touhill is director of the SEI’s world-renowned CERT Division, where he leads a diverse group of researchers, software engineers, security analysts, and digital intelligence specialists...
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SEI Fellow and Director of the Software Solutions Division
Anita Carleton was named as an SEI Fellow in 2024 for her work in improving modern software engineering practice worldwide, with her most notable contributions in software measurement, statistical...
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Director, SEI AI Division
Dr. Matt Gaston is the director of the AI Division at the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute. He also holds an appointment as an adjunct associate professor at the Carnegie...
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Chief Strategy Officer
As chief strategy officer for the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), Mary Catherine Ward develops strategic options to keep the SEI’s strategy relevant, to ensure that decisions at all levels...
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Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Vice President
Sandra Noonan is assistant general counsel and assistant vice president of Carnegie Mellon University and general counsel to the Software Engineering Institute (SEI). Noonan focuses on contractual...
Read MoreBoard of Visitors
In addition to advising the Director of the SEI, the SEI Board of Visitors monitors SEI activities and reports to the Carnegie Mellon University Provost, offering recommendations for improvement.
Member of the Board of Visitors
Russell T. Crockett, Jr. is Managing Partner and CEO of RTC Energy LLC, a management consulting firm he started in 2014. During his career, Crockett has served as Senior Vice President, Commercial at...
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Member of the Board of Visitors
Mr. Dowd has been Senior Vice President of SunGard Data Systems since 1979. SunGard is an information technology company specializing in Investment Support application software and Disaster Recovery....
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Member of the Board of Visitors
John Gilligan is President of Gilligan Group, a Virginia-based consulting company specializing in government information technology. He has over 25 years of managerial experience in leading large...
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Member of the Board of Visitors
Elizabeth A. Hight is a retired U.S. Navy rear admiral who served as the Vice Director of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA). Since January 2010, she has been with Hewlett Packard's...
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PhD
J. Michael McQuade is the Director of the Program on Emerging Technology, Scientific Advancement and Global Policy at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs in the Harvard Kennedy...
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Member of the Board of Visitors
Mr. Stitzenberg is a Pittsburgh native. He is currently President of CBA Associates, a Global Supply Chain consulting company to clients in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries. Prior to his...
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Retired Maj. Gen.
Retired Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins, a 34-year veteran of the U.S. Army, serves as the superintendent of the Virginia Military Institute (VMI). He joined the SEI Board of Visitors in 2023. Wins was the...
Read MoreSEI Fellows
SEI Fellows are individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to the work of the SEI. They are leading researchers and practitioners in their fields, working to ensure the continued success of the institute's mission.
SEI Fellow
Roger R. Bate's work with the Software Engineering Institute was instrumental in seeding best practices for software engineering worldwide. Bate, who was a former chair and member of the SEI Board of...
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SEI Fellow and Director of the Software Solutions Division
Anita Carleton was named as an SEI Fellow in 2024 for her work in improving modern software engineering practice worldwide, with her most notable contributions in software measurement, statistical...
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SEI Fellow and Principal Research Scientist
Peter Feiler, best known as the technical lead and author of the SAE AS-2C Architecture Analysis & Design Language (AADL) standard, retired from an esteemed 31-year career at the Software...
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SEI Fellow
For 35 years, John Foreman has worked in the complete lifecycle of software and systems, developing and transitioning software technologies. Foreman is currently the director of the Client Technical...
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SEI Fellow
Although John Goodenough, an ACM and SEI fellow, retired from the SEI in December 2011, he has continued as a part-time employee. During this time, his research has focused on methods for...
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SEI Fellow
When Watts Humphrey arrived at the Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in 1986, he made what he called an "outrageous commitment to change the world of software...
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SEI Fellow
Nancy R. Mead is a fellow at the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) and an adjunct professor of software engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. She is currently involved in the study of...
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SEI Fellow, Office of the CTO
Linda Northrop has more than 45 years of experience in the software development field as a practitioner, researcher, manager, consultant, and educator. She retired from full-time employment at the...
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SEI Fellow
Richard Pethia was the Director of the CERT Division at Carnegie Mellon University's Software Engineering Institute (SEI). The CERT Division grew from the CERT Coordination Center (CERT/CC) that Mr....
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